An armed carjacking defendant was released on July 7 after jurors were unable to reach a verdict and DC Superior Court Judge Robert Salerno declared the case a mistrial.
Antoine Lee Johnson, 35, was charged with armed carjacking, two counts of possession of a firearm during a crime of violence, and assault with a dangerous weapon for his alleged involvement in the carjacking that occurred on July 22, 2024 on the 3330 block of 6th St, SE.
In their closing arguments, the prosecution displayed surveillance footage of the carjacking and claimed that the victim was sleeping in his car when Johnson allegedly came, threatened him with a gun to his head, and then took off with his vehicle.
“The big question is whether this is an armed carjacking,” said the prosecution. The prosecution argued that there was no doubt Johnson had a gun during the carjacking and added that the victim “has no reason to make this up.”
Further, the prosecution claimed that the victim’s credibility was strengthened by the consistency in his testimony and the surveillance footage aligning with the information provided in the court documents. The prosecution displayed images of what the carjacking suspect was wearing and compared them to Johnson’s attire at the time of his arrest.
“What we have here is strong evidence that Antonio Johnson is the carjacker,” said the prosecution.
During the trial, the lead Metropolitan Police Department(MPD) detective appeared to contradict himself in identifying Johnson in surveillance video.
Johnson’s defense attorney, Craig Ricard, reminded jurors that the video evidence was not enough to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Ricard also noted that Johnson was charged with armed carjacking and assault with a dangerous weapon even though there is a lack of physical evidence he was armed.
Additionally, he rebutted the prosecution’s statements that the thick soles on the suspect’s shoes could be used to identify him because they are mass produced. Ricard also mentioned that five DNA samples were taken but were never tested.
The prosecution responded saying, “This isn’t a CSI case,” and that fingerprints and DNA evidence were not needed to prove that Johnson was the one who committed the crime.
Prosecutors showed footage of Johnson said to be driving the stolen vehicle on the wrong side of the road as police were trying to pull him over. The prosecution pointed out that Johnson had the driver’s side door open with his leg out, apparently to flee from police.
The prosecution concluded that finding a gun after the carjacking was not necessary to prove Johnson’s guilt because of the victim’s consistent testimony. They added that although the surveillance video of the carjacking was blurry, they were certain the jury had not lost their ‘common sense’ and could find Johnson was guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
However, the jury was unable to reach a verdict and the case was deemed a mistrial.
Parties are slated to reconvene Aug. 25.
